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Welcome to this not-for-profit paywall-free resource database & website created by Michael Vaughan PhD
An Award-Winning weekly columnist for Canada's top newspapers including the National Post, Globe& Mail and Financial Times
Tuesday June 24, 2025
Currently averaging 20,772 hits a day for the month of June


About Vintage Assessments
our roots - check it out here
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A TRADE SUPPORTER EXCLUSIVE
SEE LINKED JULY 5 VINTAGES RELEASE
See all 93 releases with detailed cases and agent information
plus our special agent summary

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JUNE 21 VINTAGES CATALOGUE

INCLUDES LINKS TO DIGTAL EDITION & SUMMARIES

SEE JUST_UPDATED NEW JUNE 21 REVIEWS
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LINKED JUNE 7 VINTAGES CATALOGUE


See our June 7 Buyers Guide
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Today's Tasting at Toronto Store 149
see 32-item updated June 21 tasting bar list now until July 4
A great Flagship store on Bloor West just east of Royal York
TASTE EVERYDAY FROM NOON TO FIVE


TASTE THE NEW DISCOVERIES

NOW UPDATED AT STORE 149

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A Great New Niagara Sauvignon Blanc

Drea's Sauvignon Blanc 2023
June 21 Vintages #16452 - $29.95 - 91-points
This new Vintages release from Drea's Wine has a bright very pale straw colour. Intense, faintly spicy, very gently grassy, bright, ripe, melon-lemon-apple nose with some floral mineral notes. Dry, medium bodied, nicely textured, minerally, very slightly grassy, ripe, wintermelon-lemon-apple flavours with a fresh, lingering, gently citrusy, bright finish. This refined ready to drink crowd-pleaser is perfect with seafood and spicy dishes. It has 13.5% alcohol and 2 g/L residual sugar. Agent: Drea's Wine
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A Brand-New Best Buy Ontario White

Norman Hardie Calaire 2022
NEW LCBO RELEASE - #10441 - $25.20
Bright, Ripe, Well Textured *** (91-points)
This just-released LCBO direct store order has a light yellow colour and a lovely, bright, slightly spicy, fairly complex nose showing mineral-driven ripe lemon-apple meringue. Dry medium-plus bodied, gently citrusy, lemon-apple meringue flavours with a lingering, mineral-tinged, lifted, floral finish. An inspired blend of 78% Riesling, 12% Sauvignon Blanc, 4% Gewurztraminer, 3% Pinot Gris, 2% Muscat Blanc and 1% Chardonnay with 11.5% alcohol, 3 g/L residual sugar and 8 g/L total acidity with a screwcap closure.


WELCOME TO OUR PAYWALL-FREE DATABASE
visit our search engine and discover
73,000+ LINKED SCORES/NOTES
click here to SEARCH releases

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Vintages 2025 Buyers Guide
unpaid-for non-advertorial reviews

2025 VINTAGES BUYERS GUIDE TO JUNE 7
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Celebrate Canada Day
the best buy Cab Franc at the LCBO


Inniskillin Reserve Cabernet Franc 2022

JUST-RELEASED BEST BUY AT $19.95
Ripe, Bright, Plum-Cassis-Raspberry *** (90-points)
- #17290
To celebrate 50-years, this just-released 2022 features a one-time special $19.95 price vs the regular $29.95. Deep intense purple colour, it has an attractive, ripe, plum-raspberry-cassis nose with refined cedary notes. Dry, medium-plus bodied, bright, ripe, plum-cassis-black-cherry flavours followed up a lingering, well textured, gently toasty finish. Showing very well now, this tasty crowd-pleaser was aged in a mix of French and American barrels for 14 months. Very limited production so lay away what you need asap.
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BEST BUY ONTARIO SPARKLERS
TOP SCORING BEST BUYS - EXPERTS BLIND TASTING
33 Ontario sparkling wines - June 5 annual COVII event

click here to see details of this excellent tasting

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RECOMMENDED BEST BUY
A REALLY COOL NEW BORDEAUX WHITE


Château de Fontenille Blanc 2023

Bright, Ripe, Yellow Grapefruit *** (90-points) - $23.96 - #140046

Bright pale yellow colour. Attractive, intense, fairly complex, slightly spicy, minerally, fresh cut straw nose with lots of yellow grapefruit notes. Dry, medium-plusl bodied, well structured, ripe, faintly tropical, bright, grapefruit flavours with a lingering, well-textured, minerally, crisp, unoaked finish. This very tasty crowd-pleaser would be perfect with oysters, seafood and sushi. This at-peak blend of 50% Sauvignon Blanc, 20% Sauvignon Gris, 20% Muscadelle and 10% Semillon has 13% alcohol and 2 g/L residual sugar. Agent: Kolonaki Wines
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A TRULY CLASSIC CHIANTI

Antinori Badia a Passignano Gran Selezione Chianti Classico 2021
JUNE 7 VINTAGES RELEASE - 384552 - $78.95
Intense, Harmonious, Ripe ***/***+ (94-points)
This 100% Sangiovese has a deep intense red colour. Intense, complex, gently earthy, youthful, Damson plum nose with some faint herbal notes. Dry, medium-full bodied, fairly extracty, well structured, intense, ripe, expansive, Damson-plum-red-cherry flavours with a lingering, complex, gently cedary, cassis-tinged finish. Has 14.5% alcohol and 2 g/L residual sugar.
Agent: Halpern Enterprises
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Copyright Michael Vaughan 2025
Contact Michael Vaughan at mbv@uniserve.com